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Bugatti honors past heroes with 'Les Légendes de Bugatti' Veyron

1 of 7The full name of the car is the "Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse Legend Jean-Pierre Wimille"

Photo by Bugatti

2 of 7No, the full name will not fit on the back.

Photo by Bugatti

3 of 7In true Bugatti fashion, it's limited to three examples.

Photo by Bugatti

4 of 7Jean-Pierre Wimille and Robert Benoist after they won Le Mans in 1937 in a Bugatti T57G.

Photo by Bugatti

5 of 7Wimille and Benoist averaged 80mph to win the 1937 Le Mans.

Photo by Bugatti

6 of 7Wimille, right, next to Jean Bugatti and Pierre Veyron, smoking cigarettes nonchalantly like Frenchmen.

Photo by Bugatti

7 of 7The Type 57G was based on the legendary roadgoing cars and proudly carried the "Tank" nickname.

Photo by Bugatti

Evidently spurred onwards by corporate sibling Bentley -- and running out of precious jewels, pure bloods, and Harry Potter artifacts to name their limited-edition cars -- Bugatti is trotting out a limited-edition run of Veyrons to honor its past drivers and past glories. And Bugatti, of course, is nothing without its past glories.

Bugatti is nothing without its special editions, either. Be sure to collect all six editions in "Les Légendes de Bugatti," which are Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesses that "commemorate the renowned names which have played a crucial role in its history and which have helped creating its mystique," but not the Mercury Mystique. The first model is dedicated to Bugatti's long-standing driver from the 1930s, French racing hero Jean-Pierre Wimille.

Wimille started his career as the motoring correspondent for the newspaper Petit Parisien before debuting in Grand Prix with a Bugatti 37A, at the tender age of 22. Ettore liked him so much that he hired Wimille to be Bugatti's works driver in 1933. Wimille made good on the opportunity by winning the French Grand Prix in 1936, then Le Mans twice: once in 1937 and once in 1939, all in the Type 59G "Tank". Then, World War II rolled around with actual tanks of its own, and with Grand Prix victors Robert Benoist (who won Le Mans with Wimille in 1937) and William Grover-Williams, Wimille joined the Special Operations Executive as part of the French Resistance. He was the only one of the three to survive the war.

Wimille continued driving after the war, this time in Alfa Romeos and eventually back to French cars. His Simca-Gordini crashed during practice at the 1949 Buenos Aires Grand Prix, and he died instantly—despite the fact that for the first time in his racing career, he was wearing a helmet. Ascari and Fangio were among his pallbearers.

This Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse (let's let the idea of a supercar called the "Fast" sink in for a bit) commemorating Wimille will be painted in the same shade as those race-crushing Tanks, only this time it's with carbon fiber instead of hand-beaten aluminum. The two-tone theme carries over on the interior as well. Want to memorize every corner of Sarth in case you want to follow in Wimille's footsteps? There's an outline of the famed track between the seats, underneath the Flava Flav-sized EB logo. (Please don't study the track while actually driving the track.)

This first example will debut not at the parking lot of the Kohl's in Corona, Calif., but at the Quail on Aug. 16, during Pebble Beach week. (We hope it's parked next to its 1,000-hp rival Galpin.) Other examples in the Legends series will make their debuts over the next 12 months, all based on the Vitesse. The other five figures honored, presumably, will include Bugatti benefactor Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar Ali Saifuddien Sa'adul Khairi Waddien, 29th Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei; the guy who mans the parking lot booth at Château Saint Jean; Ettore's mistress; rapper Ace Hood; and whip-cracker Ferdinard Piëch, whose ego spurred this whole Bugatti adventure and whose own personal Vitesse will be tastefully bodied with the bones of Volkswagen Group employees who have let Piëch down in some manner or another. Remember, future Volkswagen interns, he prefers his Sumatra blend with one cream, two sugars, and no half-and-half. And may God have mercy on your soul if you forget.

Blake Z. Rong
- Associate editor Blake Z. Rong has been with Autoweek since 2012 as an Associate Editor in Los Angeles. He drove his Mazda Miata across the country and believes that no man needs a car any larger or faster. Well, ok, faster, certainly.
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